Snag halts landing system at Calcutta

Calcutta: The multi-crore Category-II Instrumental Landing System (CAT-II ILS), which became operational at Calcutta airport a month ago, has developed a snag and stopped functioning.
The mid-runway visual range (MRVR) equipment, a key component of the CAT-II ILS, has ceased to function after its cable got damaged twice.
A software in the MRVR equipment, too, was damaged beyond repair following a short-circuit during the prolonged downpour early last month. Replacing the software has been ruled out till September.
The CAT-II ILS, which the airport had been demanding for long, has been installed on the primary runway at a cost of Rs 6 crore to ensure that flights remain on schedule even in low-visibility conditions, especially during winter and monsoon.
The system allows pilots to land even when visibility dips to as low as 350 metres. Without it, a pilot needs a minimum visibility of 550 metres to land.
“CAT-II is badly required during heavy rain and also in winter, when visibility around the airport falls below 550 metres, resulting in severe disruption of flight schedules,” said an official of the Airports Authority of India.
“Flight services have not been hit since the CAT II system stopped functioning, but that can happen any time now, as monsoon is still active over south Bengal,” he warned.
The MRVR equipment, imported from Finland, was installed at a cost Rs 1 crore in September 2006.
03/08/07 Sanjay Mandal

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Categories: Airports Aug 2007, Safety Aug 2007